31 Jan 2015

Shit and Shine – 54 Synth-brass, 38 Metal Guitar, 65 Cathedral(We are extremely excited to be putting out this album, could well be the best ever S&S album in our opinion!!)Anthroprophh – Apophenia(Taken from the God Unknown split with AMT...The 'Prophh return with another great kraut noise groove)AnthroprophhJared Baron – For one Moment(An amazing noised up cover of the great Lee Hazlewood track by our New York'an friend)Jared BaronJane Weaver – The Silver Globe(Great album of psych pop with a bit of a Stereolab late 70's Hawkwind, plus a Kate Bush and St Vincent kinda vibe...really good album)Jane WeaverMammane Sani et son Orgue – Lamru(Nice Afro synth repetitive groove)Mammane Sani et son OrgueDean Blunt – Black Metal(Paddy from Gnod and Mike from Teeth of the Sea have both been raving about Dean Blunt solo stuff to us for ages...and glad we finally checked it out!)Dean BluntFlowers Must Die – Psykjunta​/​Pärsonligt Söund(Very nice 7" by these Swedish psychsters, big fan of this as well as their last LP)Flowers Must DieScott Walker / Sunn O))) – Soused(Wasn't sure it was gonna work, but it does...another great Walker album!)Scott Walker + Sunn O)))Al Cisneros – Dismas(OM's Al Cisneros take on African Head Charge)Al CisnerosViet Cong – Viet Cong(Motorik post punk with a big nod to This Heat)Viet CongLichens – Limbo(Amazing circular drone electronica, thanks to Mike from Teeth of the Sea for this)LichensEdzayawa – Gondzin(Freaky percussive grooves)EdzayawaLubes – s/t(Teutonic jazz-noir dronescapes)LubesGabor Sazbo – Mizrab(One of of our favourite jazz tracks, Hugo from The Heads introduced us to this)Gabor SazboThe Bitters – The New Real Way(Female fronted garage punk)

29 Jan 2015

The Monitors have published a piece on some of the most exciting 'noisier' bands around at the moment:Hey Colossus, are just about to release their seventh album on Rocket Recordings, and have been an entity since 2003. Lead track ‘Sisters And Brothers’ sounds like Nick Cave on a particularly bad/awesome acid trip (depending on how you hear it). Two thirds Hey Colossus still live in London, and Thompson informs me that their physical locations have little influence on their music.“When I read about artists being inspired by their surroundings I think they’re talking total balls… you’re inspired by the people you meet, the things you listen to, what you read. You’re not inspired by the 329 bus to Camden, in the same way we’re not inspired by the endless fields and flooding of Somerset.”However, he does admit that two tunes reference their location, ‘The Drang’ and ‘There Ain’t No Love In The Mallet’. He precedes that with a description of his first drive to rehearsal after he’d left the Big Smoke:“I moved here eight years ago, having lived in and around London all my life. About a week after living down here I drove across the levels to a rehearsal – in another band we were doing at the time – and was terrified of the space… it seemed endless… My dad still says “I like to exercise my eyes”, meaning “see further than the next massive building.” And having been surrounded by massive buildings all my life, that drive almost made me move straight back to London. Whatever the opposite of claustrophobia is, in that moment, I had it.”[It’s ‘agoraphobia’, in case you were wondering - Ed.] Hey Colossus singer and guitarist Tim Farthing muses on what got him into the noisier side of things. “I think I assumed a lot of the noisier bands I first liked – Killdozer, Big Black, Shorty, Buttholes – were rural bands. Wrongly, as it turned out. But they all had that crazed-backwater-moonshine thing going on that I definitely responded to as a country lad. But mostly it was (and still is) the racket.” When I ask if there’s any way the genre (as loose as my description is) has entered mainstream culture, he asks: “Are they still selling Burzum T-shirts in Sports Direct?”Read the rest of the article here: MonitorsAlso worth mentioning there is a double page feature on Hey Colossus in teh latest issue of Narc magazine, more info here: Narc---

Hey Colossus who's new album 'In Black and Gold' is out on the 7th of Feb are playing the great Raw Power Festival.Also added to the bill is Hirvikolari, a new project by Mike and Sam from Teeth of the Sea.They join other great acts like:CirclePharaoh OverlordEsben and the WitchGuapoCosmic DeadBlack BombainSloathPigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs PigSex SwingSpectres+ moreTickets from here: Baba Yaga---

28 Jan 2015

Mamuthones / Evil Blizzard Collisions Vol.4Rocket Recordings seems to be the best place to find psychedelic noodling of the finest kind these days.Home to Goat, Teeth of the Sea and soon to be Hey Colossus, this is the fourth of their Collisions series of records, which has included Gnod and Mugstar in previous releases.Much has been written about Evil Blizzard but not without reason. Four bassists and a singing drummer who all wear rubber masks? What's not to love? Mark E Smith is even a fan. But what do we know of Mamuthones? Not much I'd vouch, but this release reveals them to be a motorik, if slightly unhinged group who seem keen on splicing in improv among the repetition. Mad brass makes an impression on the excellent Don't Be Choosy among the hip, twisted vibes going on. It's like there's a party in my pants and the mariachi band have got the squits.Unhinged vocals combine with a more post-punk party vibe on Fire On Fire to create a manic and tremendous jam too.World music gets a look-in on Holy Ghost People too, crazy lead guitar flailing all over the place, the vocals invoking all kinds of demons…Read the rest of the review here: Nine Hertz---

26 Jan 2015

As mentioned before, Gnod have curated a special event at Cafe Oto to celebrate the launch of a new album (more info on that will be announced soon).Above is the poster.Tickets can be booked from: Baba Yaga Hut---

Our good friends at Echoes and Dust have written a great review of the new Hey Colossus album 'In Black and Gold' which is released on Feb 9th in all good record shops.The review reads:Hey Colossus – In Black And GoldBy Richard CollinsHey Colossus are a noise rock institution… or at least I thought they were. The opening electronic docile tones to their new offering certainly makes you question that. The vocals kick in, which are light, delicate and you start to wonder what the hell these 6 chaps are up to. In Black And Gold is due out in February on Rocket Recordings, a label known for its trippiness rather than brutal noise rock suggesting Hey Colossus are reinventing themselves, so do they pull it off?After the soft and teasing launch that is ‘Hold On’ we spring into ‘Sister And Brothers’, which remains fairly stripped back compared to previous material. The old maxed out Hey Colossus we’ve come to know and love is now a thing of the past and you can now dive into every nook and cranny of every instrument. I know Cuckoo Live Life Like Cuckoo was slightly more chilled than anything in the Riot Season days, but this is a much bigger departure, leaving themselves with absolutely nowhere to hide and to do this with complete success the level of song writing needs to be excellent and you know what? It fucking well is, every track feels like it’s had 10 tons of thought put into it, like they have been crafted by people who really know what they are doing...Read the rest of the review in full here: Echoes and DustRoadburn have also used the review as their 'Album of the day' write up, see what extra they say about the album here: Roadburn---

23 Jan 2015

After lots of emails from Goat fans wanting Goat t-shirts we have decided to do a short run (only 30 of each) of three popular designs:GoatmanThe very popular sleeve of the first highly sought after Goat single get one LAST print.(Red and white printed on a dark grey marl shirt)StonegoatLuke Insect's stunning design for the Stonegoat single gets one LAST outing, thought this is a unique and not seen before colour way.(Red and black on grey marl)Commune logoThese sold out so fast on the Goat Euro tour.(Gold print on Black shirt)All these shirts can be bought from here: Rocket BandcampBUT as said, this is the last time we are printing some of these designs, so be quick!---

Here is a great piece by Revolt of the apes about the new Hey Colossus album 'In Black and gold':–Hey Colossus – Band of the dayOf all the adjectives we expected to employ when babbling on at length about “In Black and Gold,” the new album from the U.K. cosmic-crush-collective known as Hey Colossus (out February 9 on Rocket Recordings), “beautiful” wasn’t one of them.When last we left our heroes in Hey Colossus, we were just introduced to their somewhat unhinged, somewhat indescribable sound, in the form of 2013’s “Cuckoo Live Life Like Cuckoo” – an album we declared had us “breaking out in a cold sweat, trembling, our eyes rolled back toward the back of our head, our third-eye squeegeed quite cleanly, our tongue out, out, all the way out.”And now? “In Black and Gold” has us returning over and over again to the single, simple word – beautiful. As in, “The first track on the new Hey Colossus album is simply beautiful.”It’s true. The first track on the new Hey Colossus album (“Hold On”) is simply beautiful. As a song, “Hold On” seems to appear nearly out of thin air, a bit of seemingly inconsequential ambient noise and good Theremin vibrations making the transformation to tear-streaked angels choir in what must be a land-speed record. We hear the angels inquire, “Can you feel that it’s changing?,” before the song reaches its ultimate destination as a stirring yet subdued piece of musical perfection, one we’re only minimally ashamed to tell you has the power to make us weep, even – or especially – after several dozen listens. Ladies and gentlemen, Hey Colossus is floating in space.So. That’s “Hold On.” Simply beautiful. And “In Black and Gold,” the album as a whole? Simply masterful...Read the full piece here: Revolt of the Apes---

Padova and Preston. They’re not two places that pop into mind as the most likely of psych hotbeds. Italy may have more style but Preston certainly has more brawn…and Blackpool down the road. Cultural gaps bigger than Mario Balotelli’s wallet give one a sense that these two places will never meet in the World Series of any sport. At least until now and in what is another Collisions release from Rocket Recordings; a glorious smash up between Mamuthones and Evil Blizzard.

On paper these two acts couldn’t be further apart in terms of music. Mamuthones are purveyors of out there dance music whilst Evil Blizzard are…well, Evil Blizzard. If you haven’t discovered them yet then get straight to last year’s release which demonstrates one of the most frightening and intense bands you will ever hear. But so much fun.

It is therefore, somewhat of a shock at first to discover that these two conjoin so well in what is a glorious celebration of darkened psych dance. Not so much shocking for Mamuthones who have pedigree in this field, but for the aforementioned Evil Blizzard whose multiple bass attack on the senses is dulled into a drone like experience almost verging on dub. After this shock wears off you simply have to admire the brilliance of it.

We are completely blown away to announce that Rock a' Rolla magazine has made Goat's album Commune their album of the year!So thanks all that work and write for the magazine for their continued support for Goat and all other Rocket bands!!---

22 Jan 2015

Mojo Magazine have just put up a an exclusive stream of a new Hey Colossus track called 'Black and Gold' which is taken from their forthcoming album 'In Black and Gold' which hits the shops on February 9thListen to 'Black and Gold' here:

Charles Hayward is bringing his recent amazing Anonymous Bash album to the stage on February 22nd thanks to the good old people at Golden Cabinet.Full details of the show can be found here: Golden CabinetBut to sum up:Charles Hayward presents Anonymous Bash Golden Cabinet is ecstatic to be involved in this – 'Anonymous Bash' is a record that was conceived, recorded and produced at Islington Mill as part of the first Samarbeta music residency program that features Charles Hayward of the seminal 70s experimental rock band This Heat. Further aural accompaniment comes courtesy from members of Gnod, Part Wild Horses, Mane On Both Sides, Naked On Drugs, Locean, Terminal Cheesecake and 2 Koi Karp.On this brief and short tour, the band will be performing tightly structured dub workouts that are anchored on deep bass with Hayward’s taut and propulsive percussion work.Each track continues to edge the group of players out of established borders and into unique parallel vistas. There is a real sense of danger in these re-constructed songs - from sudden dips in rhythm to the jarring use of synthetic textures, disquieting violin tones and gnarled guitar freak-outs.DO NOT MISS OUT – once these events are gone, they're gone for good.http://samarbeta.bandcamp.com/releasesSupport from:The Family Elan - DJ Cataclyst (DJ set)Feb 22nd£7.00 adance tickets at -http://www.wegottickets.com/event/305538£8.50 on the door.Tickets will be at at Jumbo records, online and in-store and at Saltaire Bookshop. ---Charles Hayward presents Anonymous Bash

21 Jan 2015

Our Multiple Exposure series where we ask musicians to tell us about their favourite pieces of 'repetitive' music carries on with a new list of tracks. Following the recent list from King Coffey from the Butthole Surfers we have Charlie Romijn from the band Thought Forms who are signed to our good friends Invada Records.Charlies 15 tracks are:Get The Blessing - Viking Death MopedOne of my favourite tracks from their latest album “Lope and Antilope”. Trumpet and sax sprawl over repetitive, unrelenting bass which seems simple at first, but on closer inspection makes absolutely no sense. Get The BlessingSwans - Half LifePure filth. The SwansMelanie De Biasio - I’m Gonna Leave You Melanie De Biasio’s version of “I’m Gonna Leave You” is, like the rest of her album “No Deal”, dark, warm, spacious, contagious… The bass reminds me of a track by The For Carnation. It feels like walking around a city late at night, alone, in the rain. Melanie De BiasioPaik - Dirt For DriverDetroit band Paik have an huge sound to everything they do and "Dirt For Driver" (from their album "Satin Black") is based around a colossal guitar riff, over and over. They always put a smile on my face but this song in particular equals pure elation. PaikLanding - Each Man For HimselfLanding have got a very "air and water" sound. Get swept along in their currents. I'm really happy this band are back in action.LandingLe Tigre - Hot TopicI will never not dance to Le Tigre. This feminist floor-filler is a piece of repetitive pop genius. Le Tigre

Portishead - We Carry OnThis was the first song I heard from "Third". It's really intense and on the edge, there are times when it feels like it's going to burn right through my stomach but it never spins completely out of control. Having been lucky enough to see Portishead live many times, watching them close their set with this is as good as it gets. PortisheadSerge Gainsbourg - Requiem Pour Un ConThat drum sound...Serge GainsbourgAllerseelen - Gondellied (Gaya)I got given this track by Austrian "Allerseelen" on a mixtape and got really into the sound, it's quite mysterious and for some reason a bit unsettling while being completely compelling. AllerseelenRavel - BoleroI became obsessed with this piece when I was a kid after seeing Torvil and Dean on TV. My Gran found it amusing that I would dance my Barbie doll through all 17-odd minutes of it just so I could make her fall down at the end. It’s so grand and (truly) epic. Still gives me shivers. RavelAlice Coltrane - Journey in SatchidanandaRich and hypnotic… Alice ColtraneTerry Riley - In CI love how powerful this piece of music is. I love that it is repetitive yet ever evolving. I love the way each phrase interlocks with the next and then gradually, intuitively fades away as the piece moves on, taking the musicians with it... It completely obliterates all sense of time. Really great driving music. Not so great parking music.Terry RileyThe Horrors - Moving Further AwayThe Horrors are one of my favourite bands in recent years and this is one of my favourite songs. Ever. It's just perfect. The HorrorsCharlotte Gainsbourg - IRMA standout track from her Beck-produced album of the same title. Charlotte GainsbourgOneida - Up With PeopleNobody does it better... OneidaImage by Jack Gregory---

Watch a new video for the Lay Llamas track 'Voices Call' exclusively over at Vice Italy right now: Vice ItalyThe track is taken from their amazing album Ostro.Buy one of the last few copies on yellow vinyl here: Rocket Bandcamp---

20 Jan 2015

We are extremely proud to announce the release of a new Shit & Shine album on Rocket called '54 Synth-Brass, 38 Metal Guitar, 65 Cathedral.'You can preorder the the ltd blue/back splatter vinyl from here: Rocket BandcampSee what FACT magazine have to say about it: FACT---The press release reads:Shit And Shine – 54 Synth-Brass, 38 Metal Guitar, 65 Cathedral(Launch078)Shit and Shine, the mutant brainchild of seasoned transgressor Craig Clouse, have traversed to places that few ordinary bands would dare to venture, and moreover have transcended both genre and sanity in their pursuit of reckless audial endangerment. Taking the repetitive rhythmic drive of krautrock and marrying it to a percussive Butthole Surfers-style strain of acidic intensity. they’ve carved out a unique niche for themselves as one of the most unpredictable, ornery and - occasionally - outright unpleasant outfits in living memory.Like a robot Can-Necks hybrid in a Phillip K. Dick future, reassembling disco, abstract electronica and noiserock into elegant new shapes, Shit and Shine furrow brows and fry synapses in equal measure. In spite of this new opus boasting a leaner, sleeker attack than that of yore – partly informed by the band’s recent releases on Powell’s Diagonal records - the same sense of gleeful perversity is abundant, and the same twisted humour ingrained in these grotesque and hypnotic grooves.Where there is rock within ‘54-Synth-Brass 38 Metal Guitar 65 Cathedral’, its essence is morphed and feverishly formulated into extraterrestrial aural landscapes, as on the opening ‘Electric Pony 2’, which lurches forth like Chrome alchemically reassembling the disembodied spirit of Marc Bolan in a scrapyard trash compactor. Elsewhere, spectres of smooth jazz fusion lock horns with the against-the-grain approach of Aphex Twin, circular necro-Necks grooves are beset by demons. and the abstract funk of ‘Love Your Hair-Hope You Win’ locks a Larry Graham-style groove in a vortex of digital disorientation.Brandishing an intimidating psychic attack and equipped as ever with both nameless menace and savage wit, rarely has a band made sounding so wrong sound so right.Tracklist:01 Electric Pony 202 C2-603 Cowboy Hat04 Goat $Hit (Cd Exclusive Track)05 Love Your Hair–Hope You Win!06 Writing Poetry On Your Forehead With The Tip Of A Hunting Knife07 Egg Mm-Mufin/ Pimp DifferentAvailable on ltd blue/black splatter vinyl, Cd and DownloadRelease Date: 16 March 2015.Listen to an edit of a track 'Electric Pony 2' here:(watch full screen in a darkened room for full impact)---

19 Jan 2015

Anthroprophh return to the Shacklewell Arms in London to play a Cardinal Fuzz label showcase.Our good friends Cardinal Fuzz are soon to release a vinyl version of the great Anthroprophh album called UFO that was originally released on cassette on the brilliant Zam Zam records. The album is full of stunning out takes from their Rocket album Outside the Circle that was released in September last year.Get the record from here: Cardinal FuzzAnd buy tickets for the show from here: Shacklewell Arms---

Today see's the release of the next Rocket Release:MAMUTHONES / EVIL BLIZZARD – COLLISIONS VOL.4(LAUNCH075)The Rocket Recordings Collisions series has thus far seen luminaries like The Heads, White Hills, Oneida, Mugstar, Shit & Shine and Gnod locking horns against each other on psychic voyages to bold dimensions anew. The latest instalment again deals with a pair of hand-picked, boundary-breaking iconoclasts, pushing the Collisions series further out into the realm of the unexpected, as this Anglo-Italian pair of perversely kindred spirits combine to wreak havoc.Mysteriously and ghoulish masked voyagers from a land of nightmare (via Preston, Lancashire) Evil Blizzard have been raising eyebrows in the live arena in the last two years with their queasy,grand guignol-tinged style of repetitive and intense dementia, existing on a psychic wavelength informed by the howling dread of ‘Metal Box’-era PiL, the sonic overload of Hawkwind and a taste for a very British type of disquieting absurdity. Their contribution to this disc comprises two versions of the previously unreleased powerhouse that remains at the centre of their live set, ‘Sacrifice’; along with the sinister riff-monolith itself, a remix by fellow Rocket artists Teeth Of The Sea, beams the track through a prism of electronic horrorscore tension and adds chanted vocal mantas and demented ululations to suitably unsettling and portentous effect.Mamuthones, noted for their position in the burgeoning Italian occult psychedelic movement, possess markedly similar psychological makeup, building their sound on circular, repetitive motifs and taking their name from a death-masked figure from a ritual of some 2,000 years standing, famous for walking the processions and haunting the imaginations of the Sardinian locals via their prominence in traditional carnivals. Yet in keeping with the darkly celebratory origins of their monicker, this band, formed by ex-Jennifer Gentle (Sub Pop) man Alessio Gastaldello, are possessed of an upbeat and effervescent sound equally damaged by the dark alchemy of early Can, the sci-fi swagger of Chrome and the magpie spirit of Eno and Byrne’s ‘My Life In The Bush With Ghosts’.Collisions 04 explores the ying and yang of an approach whereby overt post-punk and psychedelic influences meld with with esoteric vibrations and irreverent attitude, challenging bands, listener, and label alike in an intimidating and invigorating assault on the senses. Evil Blizzard and Mamuthones make for formidable opponents, in a demolition derby where the result is victory for all.Released: 19 January 2015Format: 600 x Milky clear colour vinyl LP's---Tracklist:MAMUTHONES01 I GOTTA BE02 DON’T BE CHOOSY03 FIRE ON FIRE04 HOLY GHOST PEOPLEEVIL BLIZZARD05 SACRIFICE06 SACRIFICE (TEETH OF THE SEA’S OFFERING MIX)Running time: 39:07 minutes

16 Jan 2015

Due to popular demand we are repressing the Gnod LP 'Dropout with White Hills II'. This time the pressing is on White vinyl with the pink and black sleeve. THIS WILL BE THE LAST EVER PRESSING OF THIS ALBUM.We have 50 copies up for pre-saleon our bandcamp right now (these wont be shipping for a few weeks), all the rest will be in shops worldwide from 16th of February. So preorder your copy today from here: Rocket Bandcamp---

Here is a great video of 'Ive gotta be' by Mamuthones, taken from our Collisions Vol.4 LP. A split album between Mamuthones and the mighty Evil Blizzard.The Quietus described the track as “...an itchy, mesmeric NY disco track”The album hits the shops on Monday!!---

15 Jan 2015

The fourth instalment of our Collisions series is out on Monday.The release sees Italian band Mamuthones collide with Preston's Evil Blizzard for a stunning start to the year of Rocket releases.The nice people at The Quietus are premiering the brand new video for the track 'Iv'e gotta be' by Mamuthones and you can watch it here:The QuietusAlessio from Mamuthones had this to say about the video:"Well, everything started with “Holy Ghost People” documentary. It is a 1967 documentary directed and narrated by Peter Adair. It is about the service of a Pentecostal community in Scrabble Creek, West Virginia, United States. The church service includes faith healing, snake handling, speaking in tongues and singing. This documentary has entered the public domain and is available at the Internet Archive.I sample some voices from that and I “built” two songs starting from this: “The Holy Ghost People” and “I’ve gotta be”.Now our side of the Collision #4 is titled “Taking up Serpents” which is taken from the Bible ("In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all")… the verses from which the “Holy Ghost People” based their rites.When we started to think about the video it was obvious to use the documentary.The guy in front of the projection is doing its own rite but when the music “explodes” you see that something happens and in the end he is part of the community. "The record is ltd to 600 copies on milky white vinyl and is available to preorder now in all your good record shops.For more about the release visit: Collisions 04---

13 Jan 2015

Check out this amazing remix of the Lay Llamas track In Search of Plants by fellow Italians Julies Haircut.The band have turned it in to a cubby, drone psychedelic soundscape which sounds great, listen to the remix here: SentireascoltareThe original version of the track can be found on Lay Llamas debut album Ostro which came out in 2014.We have a few copies left of the album on Ltd yellow vinyl from our shop: Rocket Bandcamp---

After the very successful Rocket stage at last years Eindhoven Psych Fest we are pleased to announce that Teeth of the Sea will be playing this years event after the not making last years show due to their van breaking down enroute.We can't say enough good things about this festival, the location and people are amazing and it was an honour to be a part of it. So we insist you go to this years, as you won't be disappointed!!!Tickets and info from here: Eindhoven Psych Lab---

The 405 have just premiered a new video for the Hey Colossus track 'Brothers and Sisters which is taken from their stunning new album 'In Black and Gold' that hits the shops on 9th February.The video was created by Paul Sykes the band's vocalist, with help from Rhys the drummer. Watch the great new video and enter the competition here: The 405---

Members from Mamuthones who's 'Collisions Vol.4' split album with Evil Blizzard we are releasing on the 19th January have been involved in an interesting project called Universal Daughters, who's album is coming out on Santeria/Rough Trade.Above is a track Alessio and Maurizio play on that features the legendary Alan Vega.This is what they say about the album:Why hast Thou forsaken me? is, in many ways, a very peculiar album.It was made by a somewhat fictitious band called Universal Daughters, including among the others French co-producer and poly-instrumentist Jean Charles Carbone, Mike Patton’s guitarist Alessandro “Asso” Stefana, Mamuthones’ portentous drummer Maurizio Boldrin, and members of Verdena (one of Italy’s most notorious rock groups), while everything was produced and masterminded by Marco Fasolo, leader and singer of Jennifer Gentle (one of the better known Italian indie bands, thanks to their albums on Sub Pop Records).It was conceived as a tribute to the music we love: a collection of cover versions of (mostly) Anglo-American, obscure and not-so-obscure songs from the 20’s to the 70’s. More importantly, it is a fund-raiser for an organization called Città della Speranza (www.cittadellasperanza.org) taking care of seriously ill children.The idea came out of hard times and family troubles.It was during this dark period that we rediscovered the quiet power of popular songs: simple words and simple music that became intense remainders of our human condition.So we chose a handful of songs and contacted some of our favourite American and English singers. Rather surprisingly, most of them agreed to join the project.Among the artists who gave us their kind, generous support there are vocalists as different as Jarvis Cocker, Gavin Friday, Chris Robinson from The Black Crowes, Alan Vega from Suicide, legendary soul singer Jerry "Swamp Dogg" Williams, Lisa Germano, Baby Dee, Steve Wynn (Dream Syndicate), Mick Collins from The Dirtbombs, Stan Ridgway (Wall of Voodoo), Ed Harcourt, Carla Bozulich and Mark Arm from Mudhoney.We tried to avoid anything glossy or self-consolatory.We wanted the album to be a grainy, rugged, dusty celebration of life including its darker sides: that's why the songs go from the simple, unabashed declarations of faith of gospel to bleak nihilism, covering all the points between (love, madness, despair, even horror).Now it’s finished.It is an Universal Daughters record: we like it and we hope you can like it too.UNIVERSAL DAUGHTERS Why hast Thou forsaken me?TRACKLIST-I am born to preach the gospel (Washington Phillips): Chris Robinson -First of May (the Bee Gees): Jarvis Cocker-It’s your voodoo working (Charles Sheffield): Mick Collins-I hear voices (Screamin’ Jay Hawkins) : Alan Vega-Hong Kong blues (Hoagy Carmichael) : Baby Dee-Cheree (Suicide): Mark Arm-Midnight, the stars and you (Al Bowlly): Lisa Germano-Is that all there is? (Peggy Lee) : Stan Ridgway-The clock (Johnny Ace): Swamp Dogg-Psycho (Leon Payne): Steve Wynn-For the last time we’ll pray (Pino Donaggio, from Carrie)-Kanga Roo (Big Star) : Gavin Friday-Mother (John Lennon) : Marco Fasolo + VerdenaMore info: Universal Daughters---

10 Jan 2015

Here is a great track from Mamuthones that they have done for the Re: Trax 0913 album.This is what they say about the album:"A modular system with unlimited modularity". It is the heart of the "real and virtual network" that Piermario Ciani, Vittore Baroni and Massimo Giacon devised in 1981 and which comes to life again on September 6th 2013 in Bertiolo, in the province of Udine. Re: Trax is a revised and updated version of the theories and strategies of Piermario Ciani, who had in Trax its best expression and a creative apex, involving more than five hundred authors of different nationalities. The vinyl album TRAX 0982 XTRA, produced in 1982 by ten musicians through crossed collaborations at distance, is considered today a cornerstone of the art of networking, an art form to which Piermario Ciani has contributed significantly without ever moving from Bertiolo, his native town. On this specific occasion the tracks of TRAX 0982 XTRA have been further reworked by the musicians Renato Rinaldi, Mamuthones, Aghe Clope, Xabier Iriondo, Steve Nardini, Trouble Vs Glue, Jestern, Claudio Rocchetti, Ensemble Economique and Arbe Garbe. "Buy the album here: Re: Trax 0913.And don't forget our Collisions Vol.4 split album with Evil Blizzard is out on January 19th